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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28161384">Bruises</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/rinre/pseuds/rinre'>rinre</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hololive, Virtual Streamer Animated Characters</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - High School, Delinquent Amelia, F/F, Honor Student Gura</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 18:22:03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,295</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28161384</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/rinre/pseuds/rinre</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Gura's heart is a fragile thing, just like Amelia's wounds, fresh from a fight.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gawr Gura/Watson Amelia (hololive)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>401</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Bruises</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ouch, ouch, ouch.” Amelia grunts as the wound on her chin stings from the alcohol.</p><p>“Stay still,” Gura mutters, frowning. “You should be used to this.”</p><p>Amelia chuckles lightly. “Some things you just never get used to, I guess.”</p><p><em>Like me having to patch you up every time you get into a stupid fight, you ridiculous troublemaker,</em> Gura thinks, and nearly says it out loud, but ultimately just clicks her tongue and presses the alcohol-soaked cotton stronger against Amelia’s skin again. Amelia yelps in pain once more, but stays still.</p><p>It’s raining. The two friends take shelter under a bridge, sitting on the grass and dirtying their uniform skirts and bare legs. It’s nothing new to Amelia Watson, famous neighborhood delinquent, and it’s nothing new to Gawr Gura, unfortunate best friend of said delinquent. They’ve been down this path countless times already.</p><p>It’s always the same – Amelia ditches school, Gura gets worried, Gura leaves class to look for her, Gura finds her beaten up in an alley somewhere, trying to look tough, cleaning bloodied knuckles with her white blouse. Amelia never loses. She has no gang and is no leader, just a lone wolf who happens to be way stronger than the other teenagers around these parts. They challenge her because they can. Strength attracts strength.</p><p>When Amelia looks over her shoulder, her expression softens as she realizes that it’s just Gura again. Then she smiles nervously, tries to play it cool. There’s a gash on her chin. Gura only sighs, because there’s not much else she can do. They sit somewhere so Gura can stitch the goddamn wound. She has a first aid kit on her for this, already.</p><p>Sometimes they sit right there in the alley, sometimes on a park bench. When it rains, under the bridge, next to the river.</p><p>The view changes, but everything else stays the same.</p><p>Like Amelia complaining about how the alcohol stings, Gura chastising her, the setting sun on the horizon, the evening birds singing. The city lights slowly coming to life around them. Gura holding Amelia’s chin tenderly, so close to her face that a simple move could end years of curiosity, if she so desired.</p><p>There are many things that Gura wants to say in the silence that fills the space between them at times like these.</p><p>“Are you coming to class tomorrow?” She asks instead.</p><p>Amelia doesn’t reply for a minute. Then shrugs. “Maybe.”</p><p>“Kiara-sensei told me to try to get you to come.”</p><p>“Damn, she hasn’t given up on me yet?” Amelia laughs, quietly.</p><p><em>Neither have I. </em>“She dumps all of your homework on me and I’m tired of carrying your notebook around.” Gura turns around as she finishes cleaning the gash and takes a gauze and bandage. “Come to class tomorrow.”</p><p>She wraps Amelia’s skin delicately despite the harsh words, and the blonde remains oddly still. No answer probably means that she won’t be coming, after all. Gura laments how used she is to this.</p><p>When she’s done, she finally looks at Amelia in the eyes, and freezes.</p><p>Amelia is still not doing anything, and hasn’t replied to a fairly simple question, but she’s looking at Gura in such a way that makes the rain sound distant. Gura doesn’t know what to make of this. Suddenly, she can feel the grass rubbing her legs and the chilly evening wind sinking into her bones, but she doesn’t move, because moving might break whatever spell they are both under in that split second.</p><p>Gura doesn’t really dare to hope.</p><p>It takes a second too long for Amelia to look away. When she does, she smiles, getting up. “Fine, fine.” She offers a hand. “Come on, it’s getting late.”</p><p>That’s a nervous smile, Gura notices.</p><p>She takes Amelia’s hand anyway. When the troublemaker pulls her along to run among the raindrops, Gura doesn’t have the strength to be mad at her anymore.</p><p>Water hits her skin to the rhythm of her heartbeat.</p><p> </p><p>--</p><p> </p><p>It’s weird seeing Amelia in class. It’s even weirder noticing that she kept her promise. Gura had given up on that years ago.</p><p>The mood inside the classroom changes completely when Amelia decides to grace the space with her unholy presence. Gura wished she could tear the vocal chords out of every single whispering demon that plagues the room when it happens. Teenagers don’t care. They whisper behind their backs, by their side, right in front of them. Amelia Watson in class probably caused more trouble than out of it.</p><p>Kiara-sensei is an angel in that regard.</p><p>“Great seeing you here!” She smiles like Amelia had skipped only a few days, not most of the school year. “Gura can fill you in, we’re learning particles today.”</p><p>“Color me stoked.” Amelia’s reply is cool, like the way she sits on the chair. One hand bracing the backrest, a leg propped up on one knee, definitely not ideal for someone wearing a skirt. She leans a bit sideways, like she’s slipping.</p><p>Gura knows she could catch her if she slips. Feels pathetic right after considering it.</p><p>The whispers are loud and annoying, and Kiara-sensei hushes everyone with a thunderous clap and a subtle threat. It works, and Gura can finally enjoy some peace and quiet.</p><p>Gura is a perfect student, actually. Maybe that’s one of the reasons she has no friends in class. No one likes a girl who aces all her tests and raises her hand to reply to every question. Someone so reliable that the teachers depend on her to help them remember which chapter of which book they were in last time. Someone who actually highlights the important chapters to study and who is eager to help with any duty she’s needed for.</p><p>Amelia and Gura being best friends makes no sense in the grand scheme of things. Maybe that’s why they are both ostracized from the school environment. Everyone is just too afraid of something so weird. It’s easier to make up rumors, instead.</p><p>Gura stops writing for a second to turn her head to the girl sitting by her side. Amelia isn’t taking notes, but does seem to at least be listening. That alone is enough to make Gura’s chest feel warm, and she hates how much she’s wrapped around that delinquent’s finger.</p><p>Amelia catches her staring and winks.</p><p>Gura throws an eraser at her, turning her attention back to the board.</p><p>She doesn’t have to hear Amelia to picture her laughing, nonchalantly.</p><p> </p><p>--</p><p> </p><p>Amelia is gone by second period and Gura finds her in the bathroom, playing a video game. When Kiara-sensei asks, she snitches without remorse.</p><p>Amelia finds out later and pretends to shove her into her locker. Gura pinches her sides, doing her <em>most</em> to stop a smile from breaking from her lips.</p><p> </p><p>--</p><p> </p><p>Things go back to normal two days later. This time, Gura finds Amelia under the bridge again, shirtless, trying to clean a wound on her ribs. Her sides are bruised and purple, and Gura drops her bag to run to her.</p><p>“What happened?” She’s on her knees in seconds, already swatting Amelia’s clumsy hands away from the gash.</p><p>“Those girls from last week wanted revenge, I guess.” Amelia says casually, like she ran into a stranger trying to hand her a flyer. “They were in bigger numbers, but I chased them away— Ouch!”</p><p>This time, it wasn’t the alcohol that stung. Gura slapped her.</p><p>“Do you even listen to yourself? Look at this! You look like you were run over by a truck!” Gura has a gauze and bandages, but other than that, she doesn’t really know how to proceed. It’s the first time she’s seen Amelia look this bad. “We should go to a hospital. Did you crack a rib? I don’t—”</p><p>“Hey,” Amelia stops her break down by holding Gura’s hands on her own. Her palms are calloused and rough. “I’m fine. I can breathe nicely, nothing broke. They just roughed me up a bit.”</p><p>Gura looks at her for only a moment before pulling away. “Stop doing this! Have you ever considered how I feel every time I have to pull you up from wherever the hell you decide to crash next? You go around picking fights with people, and for <em>what</em>? To make my life miserable?”</p><p>“What? No! I don’t—”</p><p>“Then stop being a fucking <em>idiot</em> for once in your life and wake up, Amelia!”</p><p>That takes both of them aback. Gura can’t remember the last time she called Amelia by her full name. She thinks she never has. She remembers being three years-old and pulling this girl’s hair in the playground, only to be pushed aside roughly. They looked at each other and Gura called her mean, while Amelia just said “I’m not mean. I’m Amelia.”</p><p>“Ame.” Was all Gura could pronounce correctly back then. It’s what she became.</p><p>They hear thunder in the background, roaring loudly. In seconds, it starts to rain again. The raindrops beating against the metal of the bridge sound deafening.</p><p>Gura wants to say something, but she won’t. If Amelia has any decency at all, she will apologize—</p><p>“…For you.”</p><p>Time seems to stop.</p><p>“What?” Gura asks.</p><p>Amelia looks away, bangs covering her eyes. “The reason I pick fights. It’s for you.”</p><p>She has to be hallucinating. “I’m sorry, what do you—”</p><p>“When you’re strong, people have a way to find your weaknesses. A bad knee, an angle that you can’t block, a move that will grant them victory,” Amelia plays with the grass beneath her, taking a deep breath. “I have nothing like that. My weakness isn’t physical. And once they learned what it was, I kinda… lost it.”</p><p>It shouldn’t have taken Gura this long to understand what she was saying. But her wounded heart still dared not to hope. “Ame?”</p><p>Another thunder crashes loudly, and Amelia lifts up her gaze. It’s the same look she gave Gura a few days ago, once she was done taking care of her chin.</p><p>It hits her like a bullet.</p><p>“Oh.”</p><p>Amelia’s chuckle sounds more like a sob. “You’re my weakness, Gura. Always have been. So what am I supposed to do when they tell me they’re going after you?” She brushes her bangs back, hair disheveled. Her voice cracks. “What am I supposed to do when I want to make you proud, but every single minute I spend inside that classroom gives me anxiety, knowing that the gangs out there might be plotting how to get to you? I need to get to them first. I need to protect you, before they take my world away from me.”</p><p>Gura sits there and listens to her confession, but it doesn’t really register. Every part of this sounds like a dream she’s had countless times, but nothing feels real at that moment. Maybe it’s the rain pounding above her head, drilling into her brain and making her hear things.</p><p>The only thing that makes her sure she isn’t lost in a daydream is the way Amelia stares, like she’s begging for something. Forgiveness, maybe.</p><p>Gura isn’t sure she can give it to her.</p><p>But she’s never been one to think things through when it came to Amelia.</p><p>Her hand cups Amelia neck and she leans forward, kissing her hard enough to bruise. She feels a surprised grunt against her lips, before Amelia kisses her back, slowly. Gura’s weight makes her fall back on her elbows, and the blonde steadies herself by holding the smaller girl’s shoulder. Gura’s other hand lands on her chest, meeting bare skin, and the shock is enough to make her pull back and jump away, face red up to her ears.</p><p>“Put on a shirt, Jesus <em>Christ</em>.” Gura says, the back of her hand hovering over her lips, like a barrier.</p><p>Amelia blinks, dumbfounded, before breaking into a laughing fit. She winces after a second. “Ouch, don’t make me laugh so hard… still hurts…”</p><p>Gura doesn’t know what to say, so she just waits for Amelia to grab her dirty uniform and cover herself before approaching her on all fours, tentatively.</p><p>Amelia just gives her an impossibly fond stare when Gura gets close enough to bury her nose on her neck.</p><p>Amelia threads her fingers through Gura’s hair. “You kissed me.”</p><p>“You said I’m your world. You lose.”</p><p>“I think that’s a win, actually.”</p><p>“Nope. These aren’t the rules.”</p><p>And for once, Amelia relents, closing her eyes and pressing a kiss to the top of Gura’s head. “Alright.”</p><p>They stay there until the rain passes and they’re finally allowed to hear their thoughts again. Gura thinks that Amelia’s heartbeat sounds like thunder, still.</p><p> </p><p>--</p><p> </p><p>The solution to their problem was so simple that Gura wants to slap the both of them for being so stupid. If Amelia was with Gura all the time, whatever delinquent gangs that were after her would simply never get to her, and Amelia could breathe easy knowing that she was safe. And if Gura was with Amelia all the time, they could attend classes and study properly for tests, giving Amelia enough time to catch up on a future that might still be waiting for her.</p><p>So, they decide to absolutely never be apart ever again.</p><p>It does end up being a problem when Gura’s mom asks her to stop bringing Amelia over seven days a week, but they manage to survive through late-night phone calls. They could still have sleepovers on the weekends.</p><p>Amelia admitted that not getting punched in the face every single day was a nice change of pace.</p><p>Gura admitted that kissing her every single day was still not enough.</p><p>Things weren’t perfect, and Gura was sure they wouldn’t be for a long time.</p><p>But they were together, and maybe that was all that mattered.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i write amesame to cope *backflips*</p><p>also i am barely there but i got a twitter now so! if u wish @rintubein</p><p>(slightly based off this wonderful fanart!!! https://twitter.com/bbbbungle/status/1335736588370894851 )</p></blockquote></div></div>
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